With the intention to attain
The ultimate, supreme goal
That surpases even the wish-granting jewel,
May I constantly cherish all living beings.

Whenever I associate with others,
May i view myself as the lowest of all;
And with a perfect intention,
May i cherish others as supreme.

Examining my mental continuum throughout
all my actions,
As soon as delusion develops
Whereby I or other would act inappropriately,
May I firmly face it and avert it.

Whenever I see unfortunate beings
Opressed by evil and violent suffering,
May i cherish them as if I had found
A rare and precious treasure.

Even if someone I have helped
And of whom I had great hopes
Nevertheless harms me without any reason,
May I see him as my holy spiritual guide.

When others out of jelousy
Harm me or insult me,
May I take defeat upon myself
And offer them the victory.

In short, may I directly and indirectly
Offer help and happiness to all my mothers,
And secretly take upon myself
All their Harm and suffering.

Futhermore, through all these methods practises,
Together with a mind undefiled by stains of
conceptions of the eight extremes
And that sees all phenomena as illusory,
May I be released from the bondage of mistaken
appearance and conception.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

Translated by Gavin Kilty. Prepared by Michael Lewis. Printed in From Tushita, edited and published by Michael Hellbach, Tushita Editions, 1977.

The Relationship between Buddhist Tantra and Hindu Tantra

Although some scholars have maintained that Buddhist tantra was derived from Hinduism, this is not correct. The theory, prevalent among those who adhere to the tenets of the Hinayana, is based on a superficial resemblance of various elements of the two systems, such as the forms of the deities, the meditations on psychic veins and airs, the fire rituals, etc. Though certain practices, like the repetition of mantras, are common to both Hindu and Buddhist tantric traditions their interpretation, i.e. the inner meaning, is vastly different. Furthermore, Buddhist tantra is superior because, unlike Hinduism, it contains the three principal aspects of the Path: renunciation, the enlightened attitude and the right philosophy.

To elaborate: as even animals want freedom from suffering, there are non-Buddhist practitioners who wish to be free from contaminated feelings of happiness and so cultivate the preparatory state of the fourth absorption (Dhyana). There are even some non-Buddhists who temporarily renounce contaminated feelings of happiness and attain levels higher than the four absorptions. However, only the Buddhists renounce all these as well as neutral feelings and all-pervasive suffering. Then by meditating on the sufferings together with their causes, which are mental defilements, they can be abandoned forever. This is why, while non-Buddhists meditate on the form and formless states and attain the peak of worldly existence, samadhi, they cannot abandon the mental defilements of this state. So, when they meet with the right circumstances anger and the other passions develop, karma is created and the wheel of the circle of rebirth begins to turn.

Because of this and similar reasons, such practices are not fit to be included in the Mahayana. They resemble neither the common sutra path comprising: the attitude of renunciation which wishes for freedom from the cycle of rebirths; the wisdom which correctly understands egolessness, which is the right philosophy acting as an opponent to ignorance-the root of cyclic existence; and the development of the mind which aims for complete enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings; nor do they resemble the practices of the exclusive tantric path of the Great Vehicle.

The Origin of Tantra

The tantras were spoken by the Buddha himself in the form of his supreme manifestation as a monk, also as the great Vajradhara and in various manifestations of the central deity of specific mandalas. The great beings, Manjushri, Samantabhadra, Vajrapani and others, urged by the Buddha, also taught some tantras.

In terms of the four classes of tantra, the Kriya tantras were taught by the Buddha in the form of a monk, in the realm of the thirty-three gods on the summit of Mt. Meru, and in the human world where Manjushri and others were the chief hearers.

The Pung-Zang tantras were taught in the realm of Vajrapani. Others were taught by the teacher, Buddha himself, and with his blessings some were explained by Avalokiteshvara, Manjushri and Vajrapani while others were spoken by worldly gods.

The Carya tantras were also taught by the teacher Buddha in the form of his supreme manifestation in the celestial realms and in the realm called Base and Essence Adorned with Flowers.

The Yoga tantras were taught by the Enlightened One when he arose in the form of the central deity of each mandala in such places as the summit of Mt. Meru and in the fifth celestial realm of desire.

The Anuttara tantras were also taught by the Buddha. In the land of Ögyan the Buddha, having manifested the mandala of Guhyasamaja, taught King Indrabodhi this tantra. The Yamantaka tantras were taught by the teacher Buddha at the time of the subduing of the demonic forces and they were requested by either the consort of Yamantaka or by the consort of Kalacakra. The Hevajra tantra was taught by Lord Buddha when he arose in the form of Hevajra in the land of Madgadha at the time of destroying the four maras. The tantra was requested by Vajragarbha and by the consort of Hevajra. Having been requested by Vajra Yogini, the Buddha, in the manifestation as Heruka on the summit of Mt. Meru, taught the root tantra of Heruka and, when requested by Vajrapani, taught the explanatory tantra. As for the Kalacakra tantra, the mighty Buddha went south to the glorious shrine of Dharnacotaka and there, manifesting the mandala of the Dharmadhatu speech surmounted by the mandala of Kalacakra, taught this tantra to King Chandrabhadra and others. Although he appeared in many different manifestations, actually the tantras were taught by the enlightened teacher, Lord Buddha.

What happens during an initiation

In the initiations of each of the four classes of tantra there are many differences, some great and some small, and so therefore one initiation is not sufficient for all mandalas. At the time of initiation some fortunate and qualified disciples, when receiving the initiation from a qualified master, develop the wisdom of the initiation in their mind streams. Unless this happens, sitting in initiation rows and experiencing the initiations of the vase and water, etc. will implant instincts to listen to the Dharma but little else. An initiation is necessary to study tantra because if the secrets of tantra are explained to someone who has not received initiation, the guru commits the seventh tantric root downfall and the explanation will be of no benefit whatsoever to the mind of the disciple.

The relationship between Sutra and Tantra

Regarding renunciation and bodhicitta, there is no difference between Sutrayana and Tantrayana, but regarding conduct there is. Three kinds of conduct have been taught: the disciple who admires and has faith in the Hinayana should separate himself from all desires; the disciple who admires the Mahayana should traverse the stages and practice the perfections; while he who admires the deep teachings of tantra should work with the conduct of the path of desire.

From the point of view of the philosophy, there is no difference in emptiness as an object of cognition but there is a difference in the method of its realization.

In the sutra tradition the conscious mind engages in meditative equipoise on emptiness, while in tantra the innate wisdom, an extremely subtle mind, is involved and the difference therefore is great. The main practice of Sutrayana, engaging in the path as a cause to achieve the form body and wisdom body of a buddha, is the accumulation of wisdom and virtue for three countless eons and the accomplishment of one's own buddhafields. Therefore, Sutrayana is known as the causal vehicle. In tantra one concentrates and meditates, even while still a beginner, on the four complete purities which are similar to the result—that is, the completely pure body, pure realm, pure possessions and pure deeds of an enlightened being. Thus tantra is known as the resultant vehicle.

The Four Traditions

As for the sutra tradition, the explanation of the Hinayana and Mahayana is the same in all the four great traditions. Also, as far as the preliminary practices are concerned, there are no differences apart from the names. In the Gelug tradition they are called the Stages of the Path of the Three Motives; in the Kargyü they are known as the Four Ways to Change the Mind; the Sakya refer to Separation from the Four Attachments; while the Dri-gung Kargyu speak of the Four Dharmas of Dag-pa and the Five of Dri-gung.

In tantra, the individual master's way of leading the disciples on the path depends on his experience and the instructions of the tantric root texts, together with the commentaries of the great practitioners. These result in the entrance into practice being taught a little differently. However, all are the same in leading to the final attainment of the state of Vajradhara.

The name of this work is 'The Wheel of Sharp Weapons
Effectively Striking the Heart of the Foe'.
I pray heartfelt homage to you, Yamantaka;
Your wrath is opposed to the Great Lord of Death.

1) In jungles of poisonous plants strut the peacocks,
Though medicine gardens of beauty lie near.
The masses of peacocks do not find gardens pleasant,
But thrive on the essence of poisonous plants.

2) In similar fashion the brave Bodhisattvas
Remain in the jungle of worldly concern.
No matter how joyful this world's pleasure gardens,
These Brave Ones are never attracted to pleasures,
But thrive in the jungle of suffering and pain.

3) We spend our whole life in the march for enjoyment,
Yet tremble with fear at the mere thought pain;
Thus since we are cowards, we are miserable still.
But the brave Bodhisattvas accept suffering gladly
And gain from their courage a true lasting joy.

4) Now desire is the jungle of poisonous plants here.
Only Brave Ones, like peacocks, can thrive on such fare,
If cowardly beings, like crows, were to try it,
Because they are greedy they might lose their lives.

5) How can someone who cherishes self more than others
Take lust and such dangerous poisons for food?
If he tried like a crow to use other delusions,
He would probably forfeit his chance for release.

(6) And thus Bodhisattvas are likened to peacocks:
They live on delusions poisonous plants.
Transforming them into the essence of practice,
They thrive the jungle of everyday life.
Whatever is presented they always accept
While destroying the poison of clinging desire.

(7) Uncontrollable wandering through rounds of existence
Is concern by our grasping at egos as real.
This ignorant attitude heralds the demon
Of selfish concern for our welfare alone:
We seek some security for our own egos;
We want only pleasure and shun any pain.
But now we must banish all selfish compulsion
And gladly take hardship for all other's sake.

(8) All of our sufferings derive from our habits
Of selfish delusions we heed and act out
As all of us share in this tragic misfortune,
Which stems from our narrow and self-centred ways,
We must take all our sufferings and the miseries of others
And smother our wishes of selfish concern.

(9) Should the impulse arise now to seek our own pleasure,
We must turn it aside to please others instead;
For even if loved ones should rise up against us,
We must blame our self-interest and feel it's our due.

(10) When our bodies are aching and racked with great torment
Of dreadful diseases we cannot endure,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have injured the bodies of others;
Hereafter let's take on what sickness is theirs.

(11) Depressed and forlorn, when we feel mental anguish,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we how deeply disturbed minds of others;
Hereafter let's take on this suffering ourselves.

(12) When hunger or violent thirst overwhelms us,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have kept what we had without sharing;
We have plundered end stolen and lured people on.
Hereafter let's take from them hunger and thirst.

(13) When we lack any freedom, but must obey others,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have looked down upon them who were lowly
And used them as servants for our own selfish needs;
Hereafter let's offer our service to others
With humble devotion of body and life.

(14) When we hear only language that is foul and abusive,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have said many things without thinking;
We have slandered and caused many friendships to and.
Hereafter let's censure all thoughtless remarks.

(15) When we are born in oppressive and wretched condition,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have always had a negative outlook
We have criticized others, seeing only their flaws
Hereafter let's cultivate positive feelings
And view our surroundings as stainless and pure.

(16) When we are parted from friends and from those who can help us,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have taken the friends and good servants
Of others away, wanting them for ourselves;
Hereafter let's never cause close friends to part.

(17) When supreme holy Gurus find us displeasing,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have turned from the Gurus and teachings,
preferring the counsel of misleading friends;
Hereafter let's end our dependent relations
With those who would turn us away from the path.

(18) When unjustly we are blamed for the misdeeds of others,
And are falsely accused of flaws that we lack,
And are always the object of verbal abuse,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have despised and belittled our Gurus;
Hereafter let's never accuse others falsely,
But give them full credit for virtues they have.

(19) When the things we require for daily consumption
And use, fall apart or are wasted or spoil,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have been careless with others' possessions;
Hereafter let's give them whatever they need.

(20) When our minds are unclear and our hearts are unhappy,
We are bored doing virtue but excited by vice,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have led others to acts of non-virtue;
Hereafter let's never provide the conditions
That rouse them to follow their negative traits.

(21) When our minds are disturbed and we feel great frustration
That things never happen the may that we wish,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have caused interfering disturbance
When others were focused on virtuous acts;
Hereafter let's stop causing such interruption.

(22) When nothing we do ever pleases our Gurus,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now with our Gurus we have feigned pious manners,
But out of their presence have reverted to sin.
Hereafter let's try to be less hypocritical
And take all the teachings sincerely to heart.

(23) When others find fault with whatever we are doing
And people seem eager to blame only us,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have been shameless, not cared about others,
We have thought that our deeds did not matter at all,
Hereafter let's stop our offensive behavior.

(24) When our servants and friends are annoyed by our habits,
And after a while cannot stay in our homes,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done
Till now we have imposed our bad habits on others;
Hereafter let's change and show only hind ways.

(25) When all who are close turn against us as enemies,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have held grudges inside us with anger
With thoughts of sly methods to cause others pain;
Hereafter let's try to have less affectation,
Not pretend to be kind while we harbour base aims.

(26) When we suffer from sickness and such interference
Especially when gout has swollen our legs,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now without shame and with no self-control
We have stolen or misused what others have given;
Hereafter let's never take anything offered
To the Three Jewels of Refuge as if it were ours.

(27) When strokes and diseases strike without warning,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have broken our vowed words of honour;
Hereafter let's shun such non-virtuous deeds.

(28) When our mind becomes clouded whenever we study,
This is the wheal of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have thought that the study of Dharma
Lacked prime importance and could be ignored;
Hereafter let's build up the habits of wisdom
To hear and to think about whet Buddha taught.

(29) When sleep overwhelms us while practising virtue,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have gathered the causes for obstacles
Hindering our practice of virtuous acts.
(We have lacked all respect for the scriptural teachings;
We have sat on our books and left texts on the ground.
We have also looked down upon those with deep insight.)
Hereafter for the sake of our practice of Dharma
Let's gladly endure all the hardships we meet.

(30) When our mind wanders greatly and runs towards delusion,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have neglected to meditate fully
On defects pervading this transient world;
Hereafter let's work to renounce this existence
(And see the impermanent nature of things).

(31) When all our affairs, both religious and worldly,
Run into trouble and fall into ruin,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have felt cause and effect {9} could be slighted;
Hereafter let's practise with patience and strength.

(32) When rites we perform never seem to be fruitful,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have relied on the gods of this world
Or on unskillful actions to bring us relief;
Hereafter let's turn in another direction
And leave our non-virtuous actions behind.

(33) When none of the wishes we make reach fulfillment,
Although we have made prayers to the Three Precious Gems,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have had an imperfect commitment
To Buddha whose teachings deserve complete trust;
Hereafter let's place our exclusive reliance
On Buddha, his teachings and those in his fold.

(34) When prejudice, polio or strokes have us crippled
And external forces or harm rise against us,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have collected vast stores of non-virtue
By breaking, our vows and offending protectors
In our practice from Guru-devotion to tantra; {10}
Hereafter let's banish all prejudiced views.

(35) When we lack all control over where we must travel
And always must wander like waifs with no home,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have disturbed holy Gurus and others
And forced them to move from their homer or their seats;
Hereafter let's never cause others disturbance
By evicting them cruelly from where they reside.

(36) When the crops in our fields are continually plagued
By drought floods and hailstones, insects and frost,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have failed to honour our pledges;
Hereafter let's keep all our moral vows pure,

(37) When we are poor, yet are filled with much greed and desire,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done,
Till now we have been misers, reluctant to share.
The offerings we have made to the Three Jewels were
meager;
Hereafter let's give with a generous hart.

(38) When our bodies are ugly and others torment us
By mocking our flaws, never showing aspect
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have made images lacking in beauty,
By venting our anger we have made ugly scenes;
Hereafter let's print books and make pleasing statues,
And not be short-tempered but be of good cheer.

(39) When attachment and anger disturb and upset us
No matter how much we may try to suppress them,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have held on to the improper outlook:
Stubbornly cherishing only ourselves,
Hereafter let's uproot self-interest completely.

(40) When success in our practices always eludes us,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now, deep within, we have clung to our ego,
Fully immersed in self-cherishing ways;
Hereafter let's dedicate all of the virtuous
Actions we do, so that others may thrive.

(41) When our mind is untamed though we act with great virtue,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have engaged in those worldly ambitions
That aim at success for ourselves in this life;
Hereafter let's work with pure one-pointed effort
To nourish the wish to gain freedom's far shore.

(42) When after we do any virtuous action
We feel deep regret or we doubt its effect,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have been fickle and, stirred by base motives,
Have courted only those who had power or wealth;
Hereafter let's act with complete self-awareness,
Exerting great care in the way we make friends.

(43) When those with ambition repay trusting friendship
By luring us on with their devious schemes,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now from ambition we have acted with arrogance,
Hereafter let's dampen our self-centred pride.

(44) When the force of attraction or that of repulsion
Colours whatever we hear or we say,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have ignored what has caused all our troubles:
The mass of delusion that dwells in our heart;
Hereafter let's try to abandon all hindrances
Note their arisal, examine them wed.

(45) When no matter how well-meant our actions towards others,
They always elicit a hostile response,
This is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrongs we have done.
Till now we have repaid loving-kindness with malice;
Hereafter let's always accept others' favours
Both graciously and with most humble respect.

(46) In short then, whenever unfortunate suffering
We haven't desired crash upon us like thunder,
This is the same as the smith who had taken
His life with a sword he had fashioned himself
Our suffering is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrong we have done.
Hereafter let's always have care and awareness
Never to act in non-virtuous ways.

(47) All of the sufferings that we have endured
In the lives we have led in the three lower states,
As well as our pains of the present and future,
Are the same as the case of the forger of arrows
Who later was killed by an arrow he had made.
Our suffering is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrong we have done.
Hereafter let's always have care and awareness
Never to act in non-virtuous ways.

(48) When the troubles and worries of family life grieve us,
This is the same as the case of a child
Who was cared for with love later killing his parents.
Our suffering is the wheel of sharp weapons returning
Full circle upon us from wrong we have done.
Hereafter it is fitting in all of our lifetimes
For us to live purely as monks or as nuns.

(49) As it's true what I have said about self-centred interest,
I recognise clearly my enemy now.
I recognise clearly the bandit who plunders,
The liar who lures by pretending he is part of me;
Oh what relief that I have conquered this doubt!

(50) And so Yamantaka spin round with great power
The wheel of sharp weapons of good actions now.
Three times turn it round, in your wrathful-like aspect-
Your legs set apart for the two grader of truth,
With your eyes blazing open for wisdom and means.

(52) Frantically running through life's tangled jungle,
We are chased by sharp weapons of wrongs we have done
Returning upon us; we are out of control
This sly, deadly villain-the selfishness in us,
Deceiving ourselves and all others a well-
Capture him, capture him, fierce Yamantaka,
Summon this enemy, bring him forth now!

(53) Batter him, batter him, rip out the heart
Of our grasping for ego, our love for ourselves!
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern!
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release!

(54) Hum! Ham! Show all your powers, O mighty protector.
Dza! Dza! Tie up this enemy; do not let him loose.
P'a! P'a! {17} Set us free by your might, O great Lord over Death
Cut! Cut! Break the knot of self-interest that binds us inside.

(55) Appear Yamantaka, O wrathful protector;
I have further entreaties to make of you still.
This sack of five poisons, mistakes and delusions,
Drags us down in the quicksand of life's daily toil-
Cut it off, cut it off, rip it to shreds!

(56) We are drawn to the sufferings of miserable rebirths,
Yet mindless of pain, we go after its cause.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(57) We have high expectations of speedy attainments,
Yet do not wish to work at the practice involved.
We have many fine projects we plan to accomplish,
Yet none of them ever are done in the end.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(58) Our wish to be happy is strong at all times,
Yet we do not gather merit to yield this result.
We have little endurance for hardship and suffering,
Yet ruthlessly push for the things we desire.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(59) With comparative ease, we develop new friendships,
Yet since we are callous, not one of them lasts.
We are filled with desire for food and fine clothing,
Yet failing to earn them, we steal and we scheme.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(60) We are experts as flattering others for favours,
Yet always complaining, we are sad and depressed.
The money we have gathered we cannot bear to part with;
Like misers we hoard it and feel we are poor.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(61) We have done very little to benefit someone,
Yet always remind him how much we have done.
We have never accomplished a thing in our lifetime,
Yet boasting and bragging, we are filled with conceit.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(62) We have many great masters and teachers to guide us
Yet shirking our duty, ignore what they teach.
We have many disciples, yet do not met help them;
We cannot be bothered to give that advice.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(63) We promise to do many glorious dads,
Yet In practice we give others minimal help.
Our spiritual fame has been spread far and wide,
Yet inwardly all of our thoughts are repulsive
Not only to gods, but to demons and ghosts.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(64) We have read very little, heard only few teachings,
Yet talk with authority pertly on Voidness.
Our knowledge of scriptures is pitifully lacking,
Yet glibly we make up and say what we like.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(65) We have many attendants and people around us,
Yet no one obeys us or heeds what we say.
We feel we have friends in positions of power,
Yet should we need help, we are left on our own.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(66) We have gained lofty status and ranks of prestige.
Yet our knowledge is poorer than that of a ghost.
We are considered great Gurus, yet even the demons
Do not harbour such hatred or clinging desire
Or as closed-minded an outlook-as we seem to have.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(67) We talk about theories and the most advanced teachings,
Yet our everyday conduct is worse than a dog's.
We are learned, intelligent, versed in great knowledge,
Yet cast to the Wind wisdom's ethical base.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(68) We have selfish desires and horrible anger,
Which fester inside us, we would never admit;
Yet without provocation we criticise others
And self-righteously charge them with faults we possess.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(69) We wear robes of saffron, yet seek our protection
And refuge in spirits and gods of this world.
We have promised to keep solemn vows of strict morals,
Yet our actions accord with the demons, foul ways.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(70) Our pleasure and happiness come from the Buddhas,
The Gurus, the teachings, and those who live by them,
Yet still we make offerings to ghosts and the spirits.
All of our guidance derives from the teachings,
And yet we deceive those who give this advice.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(71) We seek to have homes in monastic seclusion,
Yet dawn by distractions, we venture to town.
Discourses we hear teach us most noble practice,
Yet we spend all our time telling fortunes with dice.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(72) We give up monks' vows, the true path to gain freedom,
We would rather be married, have children and homes.
We cast to-the wind this rare chance to be happy,
And pursue further suffering, mare problems and woes
rample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(73) Discarding our practice to reach Liberation,
We drift about searching for pleasure or trade.
We have obtained bodies with precious endowments,
Yet use them to gain only hellish rebirths.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(74) Ignoring effects that the teachings can bring us,
We travel on business for profit end gain.
Leaving behind all our Gurus' wise lectures,
We tour different places in search of some fun.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

75) We hoard whet we have, never willing to use it,
And leech all our food and our clothing from friends.
We leave aside wealth from our father's inheritance,
Taking from others a much as we can.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(76) It's amazing how little endurance we have
To do meditation, and yet we pretend
To have gained special powers so others are fooled.
We never catch up with the paths of deep wisdom,
Yet run here and there in a needless great haste.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(77) Someone giver us advice from the depths of his heart,
Which is for our own good, but is harsh to our ears,
And with anger we view him as if he is our foe.
Yet when someone without any true feelings for us
Deceitfully tells us what we like to hear,
Without taste or discernment we are hind in return.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(78) When others consider us close and dear friends
And relate in strict confidence ah they know,
We disclose their deep secrets to especially their foes.
When we have a good friend who is constantly with us,
We locate his weak points so we can torment him.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(79) Our jealousy is strong and whatever is said
We are always the sceptic, we doubt what is meant.
We are fussy bad-tempered and hard to get on with,
Inflicting obnoxious behavior on others.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(80) When someone requests us to do something for him,
We are never obliging, but think up instead
Clever devious methods to do him some harm.
When others concede and agree with our viewpoint,
We do not acquiesce-we argue still more.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(81) We do not pay attention to whet others tell us;
We are a trial to be with; we strain others' nerves.
Our feelings are hurt at the slightest remark,
And we hold grudges strongly-we never forgive.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(82) We always are jealous of those of greet status;
We feel holy Gurus ere threats to avoid
Overwhelmed by attachment and ruled by our passions,
We spend all our time lusting after young loves.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(83) We do not think of friendships as long-term commitments
We treat old companions with thoughtless neglect.
And when we are making new friends with a stranger,
We try to impress him with grandiose ways.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(84) We lack clairvoyance, yet we, feigning powers,
And then when proved wrong, we must bar all complaints.
We have little compassion for those who are near us,
Whenever they blunder, we are quick to lash out
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(85) We have poor education and limited knowledge;
Whenever we speak we are unsure of ourselves.
Our learning in scriptural texts is so meagre,
When hearing new teachings we doubt they are true
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(86) By making a habit of anger and passion,
We come to despise everyone that we meet
And by making a habit of jealous resentment,
We ascribe fruits to others, disclaiming their worth.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(87) We do not follow proper Procedures of study;
We say it is needless to read the vast texts.
We feel there is no value learning from Gurus;
We slight oral teachings and think we know best.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(88) We fail to explain what the 'Three Baskets teach,
But instead dwell on theories we have made up ourselves.
We lack deep conviction and faith in the teachings,
Whatever we say leaves disciples confused.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(89) We do not despise actions unwise and immoral,
Instead we dispute and attempt to pick flaws
In the excellent teachings and great masters' works.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(90) We are never embarrassed when acting disgracefully,
Only respectable deeds cause us shame.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(91) All the things we should do we do not do even once,
For improper behavior taker up all our time.
Trample him, trample him, dance on the head
Of this treacherous concept of selfish concern,
Tear out the heart of this self-centred butcher
Who slaughters our chance to gain final release.

(92) O mighty destroyer of selfishness demons,
With Body of Wisdom unchained from all bonds,
Yamantaka come brandish your skull-headed bludgeon
Of egoless wisdom of Voidness and bliss.
Without any misgiving now wield your fierce weapon
And wrathfully swing it three times round your head.

(93) With all of your fierceness come smash this foul enemy!
Burst ego-concepts with your wisdom's great might!
With your boundless compassion protect us from suffering
The miseries caused by our self-centred actions
Destroy our self-cherishing once and for all!

(94) With all the sufferings that others experience,
Smother completely or selfish concern.
The sufferings of others arise from five poisons;
Thus whichever delusion afflicts other beings
Take it to smother delusions self.

(95) Through we have not a doubt, for we recognise fully
The cause and the root of mistakes we all make,
If there is still left a part of our minds that would tend
To support this delusion of self that we have,
Then destroy the firm hold of this part of our minds
That, against or true wishes, makes fools of us still.

(96) As all that is wrong can be traced to one source:
Our concern for ourselves, whom we cherish the most,
We must meditate now on the kindness of others.
Accepting the suffering that they never wished for,
We must dedicate fully our virtues to all.

(97) Thus accepting ourselves all deluded non-virtuous
Actions that others have done in the past,
In the present and future with mind, speech and body,
May delusions of others as well as our own
Be the favoured conditions to gain our Enlightenment
Just as the peacocks eat poison and thrive.

(98) As crows may be cured after swallowing poison
By a powerful antidote given in time,
Let's direct to all others our virtuous merit,
That this may replenish their chances for freedom
May all sentient beings reach Buddhahood soon!

(99) Till the time when all motherly beings and I
Gain the perfect conditions for us to be Buddhas,
Though the force of our actions may cause us to wander
Through various realms in the six rebirth states
May we always be able to help one another
To keep our aim find on Enlightenment's shore.

(100) Then for even the sake of but one sentient being
May we gladly take birth in the three lower states.
With Enlightening Conduct that never grows weak
May we lead al the beings in miserable rebirths
Out of their sufferings and causes for pain.

(101) As soon as we have placed ourselves into their realm
May the guards of the hells come to see us as Gurus,
May the weapons of torture they hold turn to flowers;
May all harm be stilled-peace and happiness grow.

(102) Then may even hell beings develop clairvoyance
And take higher rebirths as men or as gods.
By developing strongly the wish to be Buddhas,
May they pay back our kindness through heeding the
teachings
And regard us as Gurus with confident true.

(103) Then may ah sentient beings of the three higher rebirths
Perfect meditation on Egolessness
In this way may they realise the non-self-existence
Of worldly involvement and freedom as well.
May they place concentration on both of these equally,
Seeing their natures as equally void.

(104) If we practise these methods we shall soon overcome
Our true enemies: selfish concern and self-love.
If we practise there methods we shall overcome also
false concepts of ego we hold to be real
Thus by joint meditation on Egolessness
And on non-dual wisdom of Voidness and Bliss,
How can anyone not gain the causes to win
A Buddha's Physical Body and its fruit, Buddhahood

(105) O mind, understand that the topics discussed here
Are interdependent phenomena all;
For things must rely on dependent-arising
To have an existence-they cannot stand alone,
The process of change is alluring like magic,
For physical form is but mental appearance,
As a torch whirling round seems a circle of flame.

(106) There is nothing substantial to anyone's life-force
It crumbles apart like a water-soaked log
And there is nothing substantial to anyone's life-span
It bursts in an instant like bubbles of foam.
All the things of this world are but fog-like appearance;
When closely examined, they out of sight.
Like mirages these things at a distance seem lovely
But when we come closer, they are not to be found.

(107) All things are like images found in a mirror,
And yet we imagine they are real, very real;
All things are like mist or like clouds on a mountain,
And yet we imagine they are stable and firm.
Our foe: our insistence on ego-identities
Truly our own, which we wish were secure,
And our butcher: the selfish concern for ourselves
Like all things there appear to be truly existent,
Though they never have been truly existent at all.

(108) Although they appear to be concrete and real,
They have never been real, any time, anywhere.
They are not things we should burden with ultimate value,
Nor should we deny them their relative truth.
As our grasping for egos and love for ourselves
Lack substantial foundations with true independence,
How can they yield acts that exist by themselves?
And then how can this cruel vicious circle of suffering,
The fruit of these actions, be real from its core?

(109) Although all things thus lack inherent existence,
Yet just as the face of the moon can be seen
In a cup of clear water reflecting its image,
The various aspects of cause and effect
Appear in this relative world as reflections.
So please, in this world of appearances only,
Let's always be sure what we do is of virtue
And shun all those acts that would cause us great pain.

(110) When our bodies are charred in a horrible nightmare
By the world-ending flames of a stellar explosion,
Although this ordeal is not actually happening
We nevertheless feel great terror and scream.
In similar fashion unfortunate rebirths
In hells or as ghosts are not actually real,
And yet we can fully experience their pain.
Thus fearing such suffering as burning alive,
We must cease all these actions that yield this result.

(111) When our mind are delirious, burning with fever,
Although there is no darkness, we feel we are plummeting
Further and further inside a black pit
With the walls pressing closer the deeper we fall.
In similar fashion, although our dark ignorance
Lacks self-existence, we nevertheless
Must by all means break out of its strangling construction
By putting the three kinds of wisdom to use.

(112) When musicians are playing a beautiful melody,
Should we examine the sound they are making
We would see that it does not exist by itself.
But when we are not making our formal analysis,
Still there is a beautiful tune to be heard,
Which is merely a label on notes and on players
That is why lovely music can lighten sad hearts.

(113) When we closely examine effects and their causes,
We see that they both lack inherent existence
They cannot stand alone, either whole or apart
Yet there seem to exist independently rising
And falling events, which, in fact, are conditioned
By various forces, components and parts,
It is this very level on which we experience
Birth and our death and whatever life brings.
So please, in this world of appearances only,
Let's always be sure what we do is of virtue
And shun all their acts that would cause ns great pain.

(114) When a vase has been filled by the dripping of water,
The first drops themselves did not fill it alone;
Nor was it made full by the last several drops.
It was filled by an interdependent collection
Of causes and forces that came all together
The water, the pourer, the vase and such things.

(115) It is precisely the same when we come to experience
Pleasure and pain: the results of our past
Effects never come from the first causal actions,
Nor do they arise from the last several acts.
Both pleasure and pain come from interdependent
Collections of forces and causes combined.
So please, in this world of appearances only,
Let's always be sure what we do is of virtue
And shun all their acts that would cause us great pain.

(116) When not making formal dissections with logic,
Merely letting life's happening flow freely on,
Although we experience feelings of pleasure,
In ultimate truth the appearance of happiness
Lacks self-existence inherently real.
And yet on the everyday operative level
This seeming appearance has relative truth.
To understand fully this deep profound meaning
For slow-minded persons, alas, will be hard.

(117) And now when we try to do close contemplation
On Voidness, how can we have even a feeling
Of conventional truth at the very same time?
Yet what can there be that has true self-existence;
And what can there be that lacks relative truth?
How can anyone anywhere believe in such things?

(118) Just as objects of Voidness are non-self-existent,
The Voidness of objects itself is the same.
The shunning of vice and the practice of virtue
Are like wise devoid of all mantel constructions
That they are independent, self-contained acts
In fact, on the whole, they are lacking completely
All mental projections and an pre-conceptions.
Thus if we can focus our clear concentration
On Voidness without our mind wandering astray,
Then truly we shall come to be wondrous beings
With a deep understanding of the most profound Void.

(119) By practising this way the two Bodhicittas,
Of the ultimate and the conventional truth,
And thus by completing without interference
Collections of insight and merit as wall,
May all of us quickly attain Full Enlightenment
Granting what we and all others have wished.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

These texts are valued by all Tibetan Buddhists. There is nothing especially "Geluk" about them. They were composed before the founder of the Geluk order, Je Tsongkhapa, was even born. These two texts are lojong or mind training texts, which Nyingmas, Sakyas & Kagyus all use.

Distrust everyone in whom the impulse to punish is powerful!
Nietzsche

Will wrote:These texts are valued by all Tibetan Buddhists. There is nothing especially "Geluk" about them. They were composed before the founder of the Geluk order, Je Tsongkhapa, was even born. These two texts are lojong or mind training texts, which Nyingmas, Sakyas & Kagyus all use.

Oh my mistake Will perhapes if it would benifit others it would be best to realocate them to general Tibetan topic so everyone may be of benifit in seeing what we all practise.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

Ah, the hurt!
Kind Lama, look to this pitiful one—
How I behave and how I’ve cheated myself my entire life.
Please, look upon this mindless one with compassion.

The essential advice to give yourself—Heart-Spoon—
Keep it deep within your heart.
Don’t be distracted; don’t be distracted!
Reflect upon the state of your life from the essential drop at your heart.

Since beginningless cyclic existence, which hasn’t ended up to now,
Though you’ve experienced countless cycles of rebirths—
Just so many variations on happiness and pain—
You’ve achieved not the slightest of benefit from them.

And though at present you’ve attained leisure and fortune so difficult to find,
Always till now, they’ve finished and been lost, have been empty and without meaning.
Now, if you care about yourself,
The time has come to practice the essence of future happiness— virtuous actions.

You appear so capable, smart, and clever, but you’re a fool
As long as you cling to the child’s play of the appearances of this life.
Suddenly you’re overwhelmed by the fearful Lord of Death
And, without hope or means to endure, there’s nothing you can do.
— This is going to happen to you!

Because you think, “I’m not going to die for some time, I’m not going to die for some time,”
While you’re distracted by the never-ending activities of this life,
Suddenly the fearful Lord of Death arrives,
Announcing, “Now it’s time to die.”
— This is going to happen to you!

Though you make arrangements, saying “tomorrow” and “tomorrow,”
Just then, suddenly, you have to go.
— This is going to happen to you!
And without choice, leaving behind in disarray
Your left-off work, left food and drink, you have to depart.
— This is going to happen to you!

There’s no time other than today to spread [your bedding] and go off to sleep;
Upon your last bed you fall like an old tree,
And others, unable to turn you with their [lily]-soft hands,
Tug at your clothes and blanket.
— This is going to happen to you!

Even if you completely wrap [your body] in last under and outer clothes,
Still you have no freedom to wear them other than just today,
And when [that body] becomes as rigid as earth and stone,
You behold for the first time your own corpse.
— This is going to happen to you!

Though you struggle to speak your last words,
Your will and expressions of sorrow,
Pitifully your tongue dries up, and you can’t make yourself clear—
An intense sadness overwhelms you.
— This is going to happen to you!

Though others put your final food, holy substances, and relics
With a trickle of water into your mouth,
You’re unable to swallow even a single drop,
And it overflows from the corpse’s mouth.
— This is going to happen to you!

Though surrounded by a circle of close relatives, heart-friends, and those near to your heart,
And even though they’re loving and distressed at the ending of your being together,
While crying and clinging,
Just then, you have to separate forever.
— This is going to happen to you!

Though you [experience] horrific hallucinations like a turbulence of waves
And are overcome by unbearable, excruciating pain,
Pitiful though you may be, there’s nothing to be done;
The appearances of this life are setting [like the sun].
— This is going to happen to you!

Though with unbearable compassion your lama and vajra-friends
Plead in your ear for a critical virtuous thought to arise,
And even though they do so with loving minds,
There’s no hope; it’s unthinkable.
— This is going to happen to you!

With an [expelled rasping] sound, “sor…sor…,” [at the time of death]
The movement of your breath builds faster and faster,
Then breaks like the string of a violin
And the end of your life has come to its close.
—This is going to happen to you!

There’ll come a time when your cherished and sadly lost lovely body
Is called “corpse”—disgusting and rotten,
And a time when your body, which can’t bear even rough bedding and mattress,
Is laid out on bare ground.
— This is going to happen to you!

There’ll come a time when your body, which can’t bear even a thorn,
Is chopped to pieces and [from the bone] its flesh is torn,
And a time when your body, which can’t stand even fleas and lice,
Is devoured by birds and dogs till nothing’s left.
— This is going to happen to you!

Though you [go to so much trouble blowing] “pur…pur…,” in dressing your body in the finest of clothes,
There’ll come a time when that body is placed within a burning house,
And your body, which can’t tolerate even the fire of [a glowing stick of] incense,
Must be burned in the midst of a fiery conflagration.
— This is going to happen to you!

There’ll come a time when, entering into roaring flames, all your flesh and bones are burned
And [reduced to] a pile of ash;
Or a time when your body, which can’t bear even heavy cloth,
Is wedged tight in a hole in the ground.
— This is going to happen to you!

There’ll come a time of the announcing, “the deceased, _______, him- or herself,”
At the beginning and end of your sweet name.
— This is going to happen to you!
And a time when the area is filled with the sobbing sounds
Of your affectionate, close companions and circle of servants.
— This is going to happen to you!

There’ll come a time when your clothes, hats, possessions, and livestock will be divided up
With nothing left in the four directions and corners,
And there’ll come a time when, in total despair, alone,
You reach the passage to the intermediate state.
— This is going to happen to you!

The terrors of the four fearful enemies descending upon you are going to come:
The appearance of being trapped under a mountain of packed rock and rubble,
And buried beneath a furious avalanche of earth— what to do?
The appearance of being set adrift on the surface of a vast sea
And carried away by violent, swirling waves—what to do?
The experience of your heart and ears being split open
By the sizzling and crackling sounds of a fiery conflagration— what to do?
The fearful experience of being enveloped and swept away
By the swirling dark winds of the end of an eon— what to do?

When you’re driven by the powerful red winds of karma
And swallowed up by a terrifying darkness—what to do?

When you’re bound with a lasso by the messengers of Yama
And, in total despair, are led away—what to do?

When you’re tortured in so many detestable ways
By ox- and scorpion-headed karmic agents—what to do?

When you’re before the Yama king, the Lord of Death,
As he weighs up the whites and blacks—your virtuous and non-virtuous actions—what to do?

When Yama exposes your lie of having spent
Your human life in attachment, hatred, and deceit— what to do?

When at Yama’s court the punishment that is the ripening effect
Of your negative actions [is meted out]—what to do?

When your naked body is stretched out on the glowing red-hot iron
ground in the fires of hell—what to do?

Though your body is cut to pieces by a rain of weapons,
Still you must experience it without dying—what to do?

Though you’re cooked in molten iron until your flesh falls away and your bones disintegrate,
Still you must experience it without dying—what to do?

Though your body and fire burn inseparably,
Sti
ll you must experience it without dying—what to do?

When your body is pierced by a freezing cold wind
And cracks into a hundred thousand pieces—what to do?

Having fallen into the miserable state of a hungry ghost with its hunger and thirst,
You have to starve for many years—what to do?

When you’ve become one of those stupid, dumb, unfortunate animals
That eat each other alive—what to do?

When the unbearable sufferings of the evil-gone realms
Have actually befallen you—what to do?

Now! Don’t be distracted! [With the sounds of hurrying] “la…ur…la…ur…,”
Right this moment is the time to steel your will.

It’s not only time—it’s almost too late.
Right now! Right now! “La…ur…la…ur…,” [apply yourself with] great force!

Holy precept of the lama, kind father;
Heart of the authoritative scriptures of the Victorious Losang;
Practice of the pure path of complete sutra and tantra;
It’s time to place real experience upon your mindstream.

Who’s the faster:
Yama, the Lord of Death,
Or you in your practice of realizing the essence of your eternal dream—
The welfare of both yourself and others—as much as you can each day?
Unifying the three doors [of your body, speech, and mind,
Put the whole of your effort into your practice.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

Written by Khaydrub Choje Gelek Palzang-po, who learned a great deal by sitting for many years at the lotus feet of Je Rinpoche.
Lama Tsongkhapa

O Je Tsongkhapa, master of the three worlds,
Who surpasses all others in compassion,
The eye through whom all beings
Can receive ultimate vision,
Peerless Refuge of liberation seekers,
To you, a supreme and incomparable Lama,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

In the very presence of the Victorious One
You entered the ways of enlightenment;
Here in this Land of Snow Mountains
You were renowned as Lobsang Drakpa;
Now in Tushita Pure Land you abide,
Famed as Wisdom Essence;
To you, mightiest of Bodhisattvas,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

By the force of ripening merits
You read the teachings and, without study,
Understood texts even in the language of mystics.
To you of naturally perfect excellence
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

From the time your sun-like body
Slipped radiantly from your mother’s cloud,
You ever shunned the dancing lights
Of the world and its vain fortunes;
To you I offer my spiritual aspirations.

From very youth you held no distaste
Toward the austerities of Buddhadharma
But secured yourself in perfect discipline.
To you who for countless lifetimes knew
The power of familiarity with meditation,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Having unrelentingly examined in depth
The words and meanings of Buddha’s teachings,
Constantly and with spontaneity you practised
The guidelines discovered therein.
To you, a treasury of vast knowledge,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Not satisfied with strings of empty words,
With subtle reason you fathomed that point
Not perceived by the millions of scholars;
To you who beheld reality itself
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Were all logicians to analyse
Your teachings a hundred times,
Not even a fraction’s fraction
Of your words would prove wrong.
To you of flawless mind
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Who but you has seen as they are
All the concepts contained
In the texts of the ancient masters?
To you in whom all teachings
Arose as practical advice
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

When the dust clothing the earth
Is inscribed by your lotus feet
Which always rests on the crowns of sages,
That dust becomes an object
Well worthy of worship by men; to you
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Although a fully omniscient one
Were to challenge your ethical temper,
Not a hint of a flaw
Could ever be discovered:
To you, a perfect renunciate,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Like an ocean of wish-fulfilling gems
Is the immeasurable depth of your love,
Beyond even the bounds of clairvoyance.
To you, a mine of benevolence,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

What load of benefit to beings
Is not carried by your mind so mighty:
For did you not reach the zenith
Of deeds sending endless waves?
To you of miraculous compassion
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

If each breath you release
Acts only as medicine to beings,
Why try to describe the effect
Of your stores of merit and wisdom?
To you, friend of the three worlds,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom,
Daily appeared directly to you
And rained ambrosial streams of teachings,
The synthesis of the minds of Buddhas,
Past, present and future;
To you I offer my spiritual aspirations.

“In the lotus garden of the Muni’s teachings
You are likened to a sun amongst Buddhas;”
With these very words Maitreya Buddha
Praised you when in a vision he appeared;
To you I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Beholding the sublime forms of countless Buddhas,
You directly received the transforming powers
Of Saraha, Luipa and the other mahasiddhas;
To you, a supreme and perfected being,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Having in a dream been given the blessings of
Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Buddhapalita and Chandrakirti,
Experience of the Very Dharma, profound emptiness,
Arose within you; to you, who has abandoned
Even the imprints of confusion,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

With the subtle meditation in samadhi centred
Upon reality itself, clear like the sky,
You moved not for a moment
Even in post-meditation
From viewing mind as illusory;
To you I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Having mastered the oceans of tantras,
Pinnacle of all Buddhas teachings,
You indeed are a perfect Lama
Inseparable from All-pervading Vajradhara;
To you I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Master who practised exactly as taught
The essential profundities of tantra’s two stages,
The ultimate paths, as never before
Shown by another in this land,
And then accomplished their purpose,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

By perfecting the coarse and subtle deity-yogas,
You eliminated the habitual thought patterns
That conceive existence as profane.
To you whose mind never stirs
From the blissful flow of mystic mandalas,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Coasting in the central nadi on a current of air,
You perceived the quintessence of emptiness,
The clear light itself, mahamudra,
Experiencing the summit of great bliss;
To you, the one of vajra mind,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Due to the force of your infinite prayers,
Countless disciples spontaneously were drawn
To the path that pleases all Buddhas;
To you, Refuge of all the world,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

In an era when nothing but the empty name
of “Doctrine” was upheld by teachers and trainees,
You brought into the light the three higher trainings
To you, the Great Reviver,
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

When you determined consciously to pass away,
Hosts of Dakas and Dakinis beyond imagination,
Making offerings filled the skies.
To you I offer my spiritual aspirations.

Mind focused on the clear light of Dharmakaya,
Your body transformed into a luminous sphere and,
In the bardo, illusory body yoga fulfilled Sambhogakaya.
To you who gained supreme siddhi
I offer my spiritual aspirations.

From this moment onward in all future lives,
May I sit before your lotus feet
And, hearing your teachings,
Practise only as delights you.

May I be blessed to abandon both
Viewing this life as something to crave
And yearning for happiness for myself alone.
And may I never abandon the bodhimind,
The wish to attain Buddhahood for all.

With clear wisdom focusing on the subtle,
May I fathom the perfect words of Buddha
And ascend the path of knowledge.
Thus may I arise to dispel the darkness
Of the ignorance pervading beings’ minds.

May I have power to discover
The import of the many tantras
And to practise single-pointedly
The profound significance of their two stages,
Unhindered by inner or outer obstacles.

In brief, may I receive grace to understand
All the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni,
Especially those of the peerless Vajrayana,
Just as do the Awakened Ones.
Thus may I bring light to the world.

By the virtue of this aspiration,
May I in all future lives never be
Parted from you, a perfect Lama,
And may I dwell with the taste of the teachings
That arose from the depths of your experience.

Because of whatever goodness
I have done or will do,
May you gaze upon me with pleasure,
And may I always unwaveringly practise
Precisely in accord with your advice.

By the power of the mighty deeds
Of Lama Je Tsongkhapa, the tantric Guru,
Until enlightenment may I never fall
From the good path praised by all Buddhas.

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

Written at Drepung Chokyi Dechen at the request of the two meritorious Drungtrapa Palzangpo brothers, by Lama Tashi Palden, a Buddhist monk and teacher who had searched many hundreds of thousands of scriptures with the lights of his wisdom.

O sun-like Prince of the Conqueror,
Whose wisdom, vast as the heavens,
Has the brilliance of knowledge
That sees what ultimately is
And what merely seems to be;
O Venerable Lord of Dharma, Most Perfect Guru,
The dust of your feet I place
On the crown of my head.

Even the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas,
Who fill the ten directions,
Cannot describe the excellence
Of your body, speech and mind;
Yet out of passionate inspiration
I shall sing of them; pray,
Listen for but a few moments.

As a blossoming garland of flowers
To adorn the necks of the clear-minded,
And as a precious jewel
To enhance the force of conviction,
This song in praise of your oceans of splendour
To delight all sages, I have composed.

Like a cloud, the merit of your superb deeds
Releases a torrent of rain that swells
The virtue of those to be trained,
And proclaims with a dragon’s thundering roar
The sweetness of the vast and profound;
O glorious, powerful, billowing Lama.

Foremost of tantric adepts, the mighty yogi
Who mastered the many millions of samadhis,
Composed faultless expositions,
And made true effort in practice,
Most resplendent of Lamas,
You tower over the heads of all.

At Vajrasana in a former birth,
To the Victorious One you offered
A rosary of one hundred crystal beads.
Thus you acquired the fortune
Later to attain the perfect view;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

At the age of seven you directly perceived
Dipamkara Atisha, the great Path Clearer,
And Vajrapani, Lord of the Secret.
The exhortations of both the sutras
And tantras dawned upon you;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

O Jetsun, Lord of phenomenal existence,
You directly perceived Manjushri,
Bodhisattva of the wisdom of emptiness,
Seated in a radiant aura as blue
As the colour of a perfect sapphire;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

From this time onward, O High One,
Whenever desired, you could invoke
Manjushri, Treasure of Stainless Wisdom,
And constantly listen to the teachings
Of both Sutrayana’s Transcendent Wisdom
And Tantrayana’s Secret Assembly;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

When practising the seven-limbed ritual
Of the thirty-five Purification Buddhas,
Continually and clearly you beheld them
And all their forms, mudras and symbols;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Seated in the auspicious posture,
Hands in the Dharma-teaching mudra,
Buddha Maitreya prophesied that,
Just as the Sugatas who possess the ten powers,
You will one day perform the twelve acts
Of a supreme, universal teacher;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Victorious Master of both life and death,
Truth visions you received
Of Amitabha Buddha, the Medicine Buddhas,
And that teacher of men and gods,
Shakyamuni, Prince of the Shakya Throne,
Each with a retinue vast as the oceans;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Saintly Tara, source of all siddhis,
Ushnisha Vijaya, the one exalted and radiant,
Ushnisha Sitatapatra, dispeller of obstacles,
And other such mystic female Buddhas
Again and again you directly perceived;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Exalted Asanga, who delights the three worlds,
The Brother, Vasubandhu, a Second Buddha,
And Dignaga, child of Manjushri,
Appeared, then constantly cared for you;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Dharmakirti, a moon amongst teachers,
As well as Gunaprabha, Shakyaprabha,
Shantideva and the glorious Abhaya,
Appeared, then constantly cared for you;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

All the mahasiddhas of India and Tibet,
Such as Indrabudhi, Saraha, Luipa,
Krisnacharin, Tilbupa, Tilopa and Naropa
Appeared, then constantly cared for you;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Clearly Manjushri prophesied
That, relying upon these lineages,
You would produce colossal spiritual boons
For youself and for all sentient beings.
Great Bold One who spontaneously
Fulfills the wishes of the world;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

When the samadhi of the yoga combining
Mental tranquility with cognition of emptiness
Increased like the waxing moon,
You beheld the form of the Destroyer
Yamantaka, “Opponent of the Lord of Death”,
Complete with all mudras and expressions.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Having touched your heart
To the wisdom sword of Manjushri,
A stream of undefiled ambrosia
Flowed into the depth of your being,
Spontaneously arousing the propitious
Absorption of highest joy.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Prayer for Rebirth in the Land of Bliss
And An Eulogy of the Perfect Intent
Of the Dauntless Protector Maitreya Buddha
As well as their graduated levels of meaning
Manjushri lucidly conveyed to you,
Who recorded and skillfully presented them;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Whenever you consecrated a religious image,
The Wisdom Beings actually entered
Into the Symbolic Beings.
This host of deities that you summoned
Still generates fields of merit within beings;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

One night you dreamed of Nagarjuna
And his five spiritual sons
Amongst themselves discussing
The fabric of dependent origination.
From their midst came Buddhapalita,
Who touched you with a scripture.
The very next day within you
Rose the mind of a High One;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

By focusing on the pith of the six branches
Of Kalachakra, “The Wheel of Time”,
You directly perceived his Buddha-form.
He foretold that soon you
Would equal even King Suchandra;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

When for the first time you led
The Great Prayer Festival of Lhasa,
A hundred magical omens appeared,
At your making this joyous offering,
The Buddhas and their sons in the ten directions
Were filled with supreme delight.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Generating the form of a great-bliss deity
Through the yoga of the non-duality
Of profound luminosity and illusory appearances,
You attained the vajrayoga body;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

By practicing the mantric science of inhaling
And exhaling OM AH HUM on the lotus heart,
The vital energies entered the central nadi,
Rested as breathing stopped, and then dissolved.
Thus you experienced the clear light,
Mahamudra, the great seal,
Attaining the vajrayoga speech;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Raising the navel chakra’s mystic heat
Which rests at the base of the central channel,
The letter HAM at the crown of your head
Melted and fell to your heart
As simultaneously the experience
Of the blisses dawned upon you.
Thus you attained the vajrayoga mind;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Having been invoked as witnesses
To your pure and perfect aspirations,
All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas came forth.
Only when you had summoned each of them
Into his respective position
Did you honour them with offerings;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

While contemplating the principal mandala
Of Manjushrivajra, Guhyasamaja,
You dreamed that Maitreya and Manjushri,
Who were speaking of Dharma, passed down to you
A jeweled vase brimming with water,
Portending that you would master all teachings.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

On a throne adorned with precious gems
Sat the omniscient Kargyu Lama
Buton Rinchen Trub.
A text of the Guhyasamaja Root Tantra
He gave to you, exhorting
You to be its keeper;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Accepting this responsibility
With mudras and mantras thrice
You touched the text to your head.
By its blessings it became obvious
That the tantra Separating and Mixing,
Obtained by Marpa of the Southern Hills,
Is the true oral tradition of Exalted Nagarjuna;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Your mind absorbed in the mystic circle of Heruka –
Chakrasambara, the Wheel of Perfect Bliss – myriads
Of dakinis of the outer, inner and secret places
Made you offerings of vajra songs,
Transporting you in ecstasy;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

In meditation destroying the forces of darkness,
You beheld the radiant Buddha, Mighty Demon Tamer,
Having an aura as pure as burnished gold,
More brilliant than a million suns.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

Your being having become indivisible from
The body, speech and mind of all Buddhas,
The might of the power of evil was subdued.
As the Dharma protectors crushed the demon families,
Shrieks of the defeated satanic forces
Resounded across the universe.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

These multitudes of Dharma protectors,
That you brought under control,
In a previous aeon had been subjected
By Buddha Vajradhara to guard your doctrine.
With profound reverence they work this still;
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

That you would, after entering parinirvana,
Sit in the presence of Dauntless Maitreya
In Tushita, Pure Land of Joy,
And would be known as Wisdom Essence
Was, O Lord of Life, rightly prophesied
By both Manjushri and Vajrapani.
O Illustrious Lama, at your feet I pay homage.

By the strength of this eulogy
Sung from the depths of pure love,
May the afflictions of beings
Limitless as the sky be extinguished.
In this and all future lives
May all be nurtured by true teachers
And embraced by the sacred Dharma.

May the innate wisdom of great bliss
Rain throughout the world;
May the stains of erroneously grasping
Mind and its objects be uprooted;
And may all be inspired quickly to become
Like you, a Jetsun Lama.

May the wisdoms of learning, contemplation
And meditation overtake the earth;
May the arts of deliberation,
Debate and composition flourish;
May the ordinary and supreme siddhis
Come to each and every practitioner;
And may all be inspired quickly to become
Like you, a Jetsun Lama.

By the limitless oceans of merit
Of having presented, like Samantabhadra,
Clouds of offerings spanning the skies,
Of having bared every negative imprint
And downfall accumulated since infinity,
Of having rejoiced in the spirituality
Of those on the paths to enlightenment,
And of having beseeched the Lamas
To turn the Wheel of Dharma
And not to enter parinirvana.

May all beings experience peerless samadhi;
May goodness swell like the waxing moon;
And may the doctrine of Omniscient Tzong Khapa
Thrive until time’s end.

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

He’s the Lord who stages and then withdraws the show, a myriad ocean
Of mighty deeds the Victors in all three times perform to keep
The teaching tradition that joins both ways, those passed from Gentle Voice
And from the saviour Loving One, the deep thought of the Victors.

He’s a god who goes to the matchless mystery of his mind, a treasure
Resplendent with all ten forces, to speak the gold mine of the sages;
He’s Lobsang Drakpa, of shining fame, and into this world came
The jewels of the holy Dharma spewed out from his lips.

He’s the revered father of all Victors; in the form of their son, a child,
Gave a teaching that draws the essence of the nectar from the cream
Of the eighty thousand, the mystery of the Buddhas’ speech: we call it
Three Principal Paths, well-known as the sun in the sky of the immaculate Word.

His lines are none of those empty words, supposedly deep, incomplete,
But rather spout a thousand riches, advice from experience
Of each step of the meaning itself, the high paths in their entirety,
Capturing the glory of good of the world or peace, wherever.

Come great warrior, who has no fear of what will make him wise;
Take up the bow of these wonderful books, the true Word, open and secret;
Use it with the feathered shafts of reasoning, way of the wise
Throughout the world, pierce the hearts of those who would teach wrong.

When will I decide to give the rest of my life some meaning?
When will I throw away this lie of happiness in this life,
The shining embrace of grabbing after good things in this world,
My forever friend, the foe of my forever happiness.

In this and my future lives may I never fail to collect
More of the short and long-term causes which bring me both the bodies;
May I win the beauty of eyes that guide myself and others too
On the excellent paths, fixed upon the wise and adept ahead.

This is not a load that the likes of me could ever bear,
But I’ve tried my best to put his eloquence down in black and white.
I may have slipped, and lost some words or meaning, or the like;
I kneel before my Lama and freely admit any error made.

By the pure white force in deeds like this endeavour I’ve completed
May my thoughts, those of others too, all turn to the holy Dharma.
May it come to cause us all to cut what ties us to this life,
And help us take best essence from the time and chance we have.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

In Praise Of The Incomparable Tsongkhapa
By Gyalwa Mikyo Dorje, the Eighth Karmapa (1507 – 1554)
October 23, 2009

Once when Gyalwa Mikyo Dorje was travelling through the Charida Pass, thoughts of the incomparable Tsongkhapa welled up within him. Overcome by profound faith, he was moved to compose the above poem.

At a time when nearly all in this Northern Land
Were living in utter contradiction to Dharma,
Without illusion, O Tsongkhapa, you polished the teachings.
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

When the teachings of the Sakya, Kargu, Kadam
And Nyingma sects in Tibet were declining,
You, O Tsongkhapa, revived Buddha’s Doctrine,
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, gave to you
Special instructions on the thought of Nagarjuna.
O Tsongkhapa, upholder of the Middle Way,
I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

"Mind and form are not empty of their own natures
But are empty of truly existent mind and form",
You, O Tsongkhapa, are Tibet’s chief exponent of voidness,
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

In merely a few years you filled
The land from China to India
With peerless holders of the saffron robes.
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

Those who become your followers
And look to you and your teachings
Are never again disappointed or forsaken.
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

The trainees who walk in your footsteps
Breath the fresh air of the Great Way.
They would die for the good of the world.
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

Anyone who disparages your doctrine must face
The terrible wrath of the Dharma protectors.
O Tsongkhapa, who abides in truth’s power,
I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

In person and in dreams you come to those
Who but once recollect your image.
O Tsongkhapa, who watches with compassionate eyes.
I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

In order to civilize men and spirits you spread
Your teachings through Kham, Mongolia and Turkestan:
O Tsongkhapa, subduer of savages,
I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

For men coarse and far from the Way, you dispel
Mental clouds, evils and bad karma.
O Tsongkhapa, who bestows quick progress,
I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

Those who take heartfelt Refuge in you,
Even those with no hope for now or hereafter,
O Tsongkhapa, have their every wish fulfilled.
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

Having exposed false teachings transgressing
The excellent ways well shown by Buddha,
You firmly established your Bold Doctrine.
Hence I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

Manifesting sublime austerity and discipline,
The form and fragrance of your life was incomparable.
O Tsongkhapa, controlled one pleasing to the Buddhas,
I sing this praise to you of Ganden Mountain.

By the strength of the sons of your lineage
And by my having faithfully offered this praise,
May the enlightened activity of Buddha Shakyamuni
Pervade the earth for ages to come.

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

By the strength of the sons of your lineage
And by my having faithfully offered this praise,
May the enlightened activity of Buddha Shakyamuni
Pervade the earth for ages to come.

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Robert Thurman is an amazing genius. Along with Jeffrey Hopkins and Alex Berzin he has been instrumental in establishing Tibetan Buddhism as an academic discipline in the American educational system. I know there are others as well but these three collectively have imho done more to legitimize dharma in the west - and make it accessible to western educated people - than anyone else with the exception of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Incredible minds, incredible people.

By the strength of the sons of your lineage
And by my having faithfully offered this praise,
May the enlightened activity of Buddha Shakyamuni
Pervade the earth for ages to come.

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Robert Thurman is an amazing genius. Along with Jeffrey Hopkins and Alex Berzin he has been instrumental in establishing Tibetan Buddhism as an academic discipline in the American educational system. I know there are others as well but these three collectively have imho done more to legitimize dharma in the west - and make it accessible to western educated people - than anyone else with the exception of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Incredible minds, incredible people.

By the strength of the sons of your lineage
And by my having faithfully offered this praise,
May the enlightened activity of Buddha Shakyamuni
Pervade the earth for ages to come.

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Robert Thurman is an amazing genius. Along with Jeffrey Hopkins and Alex Berzin he has been instrumental in establishing Tibetan Buddhism as an academic discipline in the American educational system. I know there are others as well but these three collectively have imho done more to legitimize dharma in the west - and make it accessible to western educated people - than anyone else with the exception of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Incredible minds, incredible people.

I will echo praise of Thurman's scholarship but not the man himself.

Same here, his works are mainly good and Im fairly happy when beautiful verses of praise like this are translated.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

Though he’s the father, producer of all conquerors,
As a conqueror’s son, he produced the thought of upholding
The conqueror’s Dharma in infinite worlds. Through this truth
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

When of yore before [Buddha] Indraketu
He made his vow, the conqueror and his offspring
Praised his powerful courage. Through this truth
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

That the lineage of pure view and conduct might spread,
He offered a white crystal rosary to the Sage,
Who gave him a conch and prophesied. Through this truth
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

His pure view free of eternity or destruction;
His pure meditation cleansed of dark fading and fog;
His pure conduct practiced according to conquerors’ orders:
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

Learned, since he extensively sought out learning;
Reverend, rightly applying it to himself;
Good, dedicating all for beings and doctrine:
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

Through being sure that all scriptures, definitive and
Interpretative, were, without contradiction,
Advice for one person’s practice, he stopped all misconduct:
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

Listening to explanations of the three pitakas,
Realized teachings, practice of the three trainings –
His skilled and accomplished life story is amazing.
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

Outwardly calmed and subdued by the hearer’s conduct,
Inwardly trusting in the two stages’ practice,
He allied without clash the good paths of sutra and tantra:
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

Combining voidness, explained as the causal vehicle,
With great bliss, achieved by method, the effect vehicle,
Heart essence of eighty thousand Dharma bundles –
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

By the power of the ocean of oath-bound doctrine protectors,
Like the main guardians of the three beings’ paths –
The quick-acting lord, Vaishravana, Karma-yama –
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

In short, by the lasting of glorious gurus’ lives,
By the earth being full of good, learned, reverend holders
Of the teaching, and by the increase of power of its patrons,
May the conqueror Losang’s teachings flourish!

Footnote: Extracted from the Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa (Edited by Prof. R. Thurman)

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.

In the year of the Water dog, Lama Gyalwa Kalzang Gyatso visited Gaden Monastery. Inspired by the extraordinary vibration pervading the place and filled with marvel at the strength and kindness of Omniscient Lord Tsongkhapa, who had founded Gaden, His Holiness Kalzang Gyatso was moved to write this song.

Above, in actuality pristine awareness
Manifest as a radiant Buddha mandala,
The pure land of Tushita, the Joyous Abode
Blessed by Buddhas past, present and future.

Mountains of herbs blanketed in sweet aromas,
Flowers blossoming morning, noon and night,
A forest of trees with turquoise leaves:
Reminders of the splendid body of Je Rinpoche.

The murmur of a river swiftly flowing,
The stirring songs of birds,
The majestic sound of a Dharma teaching:
Reminders of the gentle voice of Je Rinpoche.

Body adorned with the marks of a Buddha,
Speech raining down vast and profound Dharma,
Mind seeing all things in the sphere of clear light:
I recollect Je Rinpoche, Lobsang Drakpa.

Fulfill your vow to benefit beings;
Descend, grant protection and power.
To you I offer an ocean of all-good things.
Enjoy them within your great bliss.

On the Mighty Nomad Mountain, quiet, easy,
A land made pure with goodness and strength,
Stands your Gaden Monastery, prophesied by Buddha:
A monastery producing limitless Awakened Ones.

Your mind on Bliss and Void inseparable,
The flow of events appeared as a rainbow.
One body sends endless clouds of emanations
To set this world ablaze with joy.

Your profound teachings bridging Sutra and Tantra
Are jewels for those truly seeking liberation.
Even the words you used are perfect,
Nakedly pointing the way for the ripe.

O Je Lama, because of your infinite kindness
We can understand all Sutras and Tantras as precepts,
Can see the entire path leading to perfection
And can correct all delusions and mistaken concepts.

O Master, merely hearing legends of your deeds
Can place a man on the enlightening path;
With thoughts of your greatness, with heart
Trembling, I fix mind upon you.

Invisible father gone to Bliss,
Listen to this plaintive song
Of a boy still in Samsara’s quicksands,
Of an ill-fated son cut from his Refuge.

In terms of external appearances,
A monk is easily proud of his robes,
But if his thoughts fall only on the transient
Are his lusts not worse than a layman’s?

The masses revel in black actions
And through evil gain their ends.
Flashes of a degenerate age
Crash in the depths of my heart.

How glamorous and exciting to go
Through the motions of practising Dharma,
And to hear the profound teachings;
But the mind, hard as wood, is slow to change.

The spirit, weak and uncontrolled,
Staggers under the three psychic poisons
Whenever an object appears to it:
A golden vessel filled with urine

Precious humanity, the chance to be a Buddha;
But we create only misery with it
And throw away all hope of actually
Benefitting either ourselves or others.

I, born so late, unfortunate,
Pass my time amid negativity and confusion.
Father Lama, look upon me;
Hold me with hooks of compassion.

In this life, the bardo and future lives,
Pray, be my guide.
My Refuge, forsake me not.
Omniscient One, be with me always.

Care for all beings as a mother for her son.
Spiritual Father, to us who are children,
Reveal visibly the mandala of your body
Magnificent with every mark of perfection.

Bestow upon us the oral teachings
Which render every experience meaningful.
Bless us to make our minds at one taste
With great bliss and unapprehendable wisdom.

Life is impermanent like the setting sun.
Wealth is like dew on morning grass,
Praise is like wind in a mountain pass,
A youthful body is an autumn flower.

Bless me to understand the shortcomings
Of constantly turning on the wheel of becoming
And to fix the depths of my mind
On the path leading to ultimate knowledge.

Bestow upon me transforming powers to fill
My mental continuum with love and compassion,
To see the beings of Samsara’s six realms
As mothers who have forever helped me.

Bestow upon me transforming powers
Quickly to realize the way things are,
To understand images viewed by the mind
As paintings created by the mind itself.

Help me attain Enlightenment in this very life
Through the yogic methods of Tantra’s two stages,
To see external events as the sport of Buddhas
And the mind as satiated with Bliss and Emptiness.

And when, to fight delusion, meditation’s enemy,
I retreat to a cave on a distant mountain,
A place to give birth to serenity and joy,
Bless me to penetrate the innermost profundity.

Grant me powers swiftly to annihilate
All inner and outer negative forces,
And power to cleanse the stains of having dwelt
Far from the limits of Dharma’s three bonds.

O Manjushri, who reveals himself magically
In peaceful, wrathful and protective forms,
May your auspicious deeds reach fruition
And you remain a constant Refuge to the world.

Bestow upon me the powerful blessings
Of your mysterious body, speech and mind,
That my every physical, verbal and mental
Movement may benefit beings and the teachings.

May the thunder of the Sutras and Tantras shake the earth,
May the sun of Tsongkhapa’s “Practice Lineage” rage,
May all practitioners attain the power
And all sentient beings realize their wishes.

Abandoning Dharma is, in the final analysis, disparaging the Hinayana because of the Mahayana; favoring the Hinayana on account of the Mahayana; playing off sutra against tantra; playing off the four classes of the tantras against each other; favoring one of the Tibetan schools—the Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, or Nyingma—and disparaging the rest; and so on. In other words, we abandon Dharma any time we favor our own tenets and disparage the rest.